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During my career I have had the wonderful opportunity to work on and solve very complicated process issues. My success is based on 8 steps that I follow when faced with a complex situation.

[1] Have the knowledge and skills to pursue the problem. First, be sure you have generic “lean/six sigma” skills. [My post next week will address what the key skills are and how to get them.] These skills are vital and transferrable from project to project. Second, read existing process documentation. Third, talk to people who do the work; leaders, experts and anyone else you believe can provide pertinent perspectives and insights regarding the overall process.

[2] Create a business process flow chart or value stream map. Using a white board, large piece of paper, Excel, Visio or any other flow chart software, create a complete business process flow chart. In one case, the company I was assisting had a very well written and thorough brochure which included terms and conditions. By reading it cover to cover, I was able to accurately create a flow chart of the business process flow. If you are the individual charged with leading the change, creating the flow chart yourself gives you unparalleled insight into the process.

[3] Corroborate the business process flow chart with others. Once created, review the chart with the people doing the work. Almost always, you will find a few things that need to be adjusted.

[4] Identify where problems occur in the process. In a facilitated discussion with staff, using the flow chart, identify where problems in the process occur. Every time I have led such a session, numerous problems were identified. Then prioritize the list to determine what the most pressing issues are.

[5] Understand current written work instructions, policies and procedures. During this step you may find inconsistencies that must be rectified.

[6] Identify root cause for the top issues. Uncovering the issues is just the first step. Now you and the team have to dig into the detail [peel the onion] to determine what the true root cause is. You must do this for all the key issues. In this step it is absolutely critical to get the data.

[7] Develop potential solutions. With the root cause of an issue clearly understood, the team can create potential solutions. It is important to have several to choose from because the perfect solution may be too costly to implement. The team should then select what they believe to be the optimal solution. Gain approval as needed.

[8] Implement and monitor the solution. Once the green-light is given, plan out the implementation. A robust project plan will ensure success. [Note: trying to implement a change without a project plan is a recipe for failure.] Be sure to create the appropriate process metrics so that the team can track how well the process is doing after the changes are implemented. Nothing is ever perfect. It is likely that the team may need to make some slight modifications.

You can see how this becomes a continuous cycle of improvement. Select the most pressing process issue. Fix it. Then select the next process issue. Fix it. Repeat this again and again.

Call me if you would like to discuss the 8 steps in more detail: 585-329-3754. I love discussing operational excellence and continuous improvement.